Originally posted by Parallax That sounds more like a government operation than a for profit enterprise.
I have been making that observation since long before it was my workplace. It is obvious even from the outside. Having spent 30 years working in public service at the PUD I know bureaucracy. And it changed to be much more so about the time the logo last changed.
The crew I worked on at the first job, building up the upper trailing edge of the wing in the wing majors tool, was actively engaged in continuous process improvement as a daily part of the build. We had a short weekly meeting to discuss ongoing improvement items, and consider any new ones, and address any implementation issues. In our small way, we improved efficiencies, reduced or eliminated rework, reduced waste and consumption of consumables, ultimately reducing the cost of production.
Most crews do this, as it is part of the BPS* directives.
The culture in manufacturing began to change around 1980, when the focus on CQI** began. about the time the 767 was rolled out the employee involvement idea came along, and EI*** Teams were formed.
Other things like first pass quality grew out of this. The goal is to finish the product with first pass quality, and if there are things preventing that, everyone involved collaborates and looks for solutions.
In the 1990's the concept of lean manufacturing was emerging, not just in aerospace, but all manufacturing.
Statistical process control.
Just in time.
Variability reduction.
Hardware variability control.
Boeing studied the Toyota Production System, and has adopted it, integrating the ideology into the BPS.
This new assignment is a step above the crew level process I think. They are allocating restrained but significant resources for this. It looks like they put some thought into the people selected for it too. I have confidence in it. It will work.
*Boeing Production System which directs and guides the manufacturing and production of Boeing products.
**Continuous Quality Improvement
***Employee Involvement Teams